The Academy of the Company Theatre is an after-school program, but young actors in an upcoming production of the play “The Hiding Place” had homework to do.

To better understand the play’s heavy content – it’s set in Nazi-occupied Holland during World War II – the actors read the book from which the play was adapted and watched the 1975 film version.

They were exposed to other readings on the Holocaust and practiced dramatic exercises to help them gain perspective.

Performances will be given next Friday and Saturday at the theater on Accord Park Drive.

“A lot of people understand the facts but not the humanity of the Holocaust,” said Corinne Mason, who is co-directing the production with Steve Dooner. “All of this taught them that.”

What made the play’s content resonate with the two dozen cast members, who range from age 12 to college students, was a visit with John and Elizabeth Sherrill, who, along with Corrie ten Boom, wrote the book in 1971.

The Sherrills met with the cast during an early rehearsal to share the true story of the ten Boom family, Dutch Christians who helped Jews escape the Nazis during the Holocaust. Family members were eventually caught and sent to a concentration camp for political prisoners.

“Being able to talk to (the Sherrills) just brought everything to a more professional level,” said Catherine Andersen, 18, who portrays Betsie ten Boom, Corrie’s sister, in the play. “They were so inspirational.”

The Sherrills, who met Corrie ten Boom while traveling in Europe and remained friends with her until her death in 1983, also brought some of the ten Boom family’s belongings to show the students and took questions from the cast.

Zoe Bradford, producer of “The Hiding Place” and the theater’s co-artistic director, set up the session with the Sherrills. She had met the couple, who live at Linden Ponds in Hingham, at her church. After they gave her a copy of their book, Bradford chose the play for the Teen Conservatory to perform. It will be the first time the play is performed on the East Coast.

Bradford said meeting with the Sherrills helped the cast form an attachment with the plot.

“It helped them live the story, become a part of it,” Bradford said. “It’s a lesson they’ll take with them for the rest of their lives. The reaction from the kids was just so extraordinary and moving.”

The meeting also made it easier for the young actors to connect with their characters.

“Meeting the authors made it really sink in and made me look at my lines differently,” said 16-year-old Colie Smigliani of Hanover, who plays Corrie. “Since they were real people, you have to be honest with these characters.”

Page 2 of 2 - Bradford said the performance of “The Hiding Place” exemplifies the Teen Conservatory’s history of thought-provoking, thematically heavy productions.

“We try to tie in to what’s important to the kids, and to the things they can relate to,” said Bradford, who will lead a post-show discussion and screen a video made when the Sherrills visited. “Whenever you can set public awareness and create tolerance, that’s a wonderful thing.”